Thorner - BCSD Static Server - Bakersfield City School District

Safe School Plan Continued12. Selecting and retaining professional education staff who are sensitive to the needs ofstudents of all races, genders, sexual orientations, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, andstudents with disabilities.13. An environment free from harassment, discrimination, and violence on any of the basesenumerated in the prohibition of discrimination contained in applicable law.Crisis and Disaster: Mitigation and PreventionMitigation“Mitigation” is defined as the activities designed to reduce or eliminate risks to persons or propertyor to lessen the actual or potential effects or consequences of an incident. Mitigation measures maybe implemented prior to, during, or after an incident. Mitigation measures are often informed bylessons learned from prior incidents. Mitigation measures may include zoning and building codes,school facility design, and analysis of hazard-related data to determine where it is safe to build orlocate temporary facilities. Mitigation can include efforts to educate government, businesses, andthe public on measures they can take to reduce loss and injury (Author, March 1, 2004, NationalIncident Management System, U.S. Department of Homeland Security).Prevention“Prevention” includes actions to avoid an incident or to intervene to stop an incident from occurring.Prevention involves measures to protect lives and property. It involves applying assessment, surveyand other “intelligence” or information to a range of activities that may include suchcountermeasures as deterrence operations; heightened inspections; school perimeter control,registration of visitors, improved surveillance and security operations; investigations to determinethe full nature and source of threat; public health surveillance and testing processes; immunizations,isolation, or quarantine; and, as appropriate, specific law enforcement operations aimed at deterring,preempting, interdicting, or disrupting illegal activity and apprehending potential perpetrators(Author, March 1, 2004, National Incident Management System, U.S. Department of HomelandSecurity).The goals of mitigation and prevention include decreasing the need for response as opposed tosimply increasing response capability. Typical strategies include the following.Connect with community emergency responders to identify local hazards.Review the last safety audit to examine school buildings and grounds.Designate who is responsible for overseeing violence prevention strategies in the school.Encourage staff to provide input and feedback during the crisis planning process.Review incident data.Determine major problems in the school with regard to student crime and violence.Assess how the school addresses these problems.20